An electrical wire comprising an electrically conductive member with an insulator surrounding the member is well known in the art. Typically, in the prior art, electrical wires are used to electrically connect different electrical or electronic components. In so doing, the insulator surrounding the electrically conductive member must be removed so that the electrically conductive member, typically a metal such as gold, silver, or more commonly copper or aluminum, can then be electrically connected to the electrical or electronic components by solder or the like. In order to remove the insulator which surrounds the electrically conductive member, wire strippers or other mechanical devices have been used. In a wire stripper, a plier like device having a hole with a sharp edge is used. The hole is approximately the size of the electrically conductive member. As the stripper is squeezed or engages the outer insulator, it cuts the outer insulator. However, since there is a hole that is approximately the size of the electrically conductive member, the stripper stops and does not cut into the electrically conductive member. The user then exerts a force by pulling the insulator away. Sometimes, in the process of so doing, the stripper may hit or nick the electrically conductive member. In other cases, the pulling may cause a tear in the insulator coating, thereby stripping more or less than the desired amount. Other mechanical methods for stripping the insulation include the use of a knife to cut the insulation and then pull the cut insulation. However, the problems of potentially nicking the electrically conductive member and the inaccuracy of the amount of insulation stripped remains. Still other methods have included the use of sand paper or other abrasive techniques to remove the insulation.
The aforementioned problems of stripping an electrical wire are exacerbated as the size of the wire decreases. As the wires become smaller and smaller to connect smaller components, or are used in confined spaces, the electrically conductive member becomes extremely small and the insulator surrounding it is also very small. Thus, the tolerance between the outer diameter of the electrical wire and the outer diameter of the electrically conductive member is very small. This increases the risk that using a stripper or other mechanical means can nick or cut the electrically conductive member and/or the mechanical device can remove more or less of the insulator than is desired.